SAN MARCOS, Texas – Five Texas State football student-athletes were recognized among the Pac-12's preseason Impact Players entering the conference's 2026 football season, the league announced Tuesday.

Quarterback Brad Jackson, wide receivers Beau Sparks and Chris Dawn, Jr. and defensive linemen Chancellor Owens and Jo'Laison Landry were selected as the Bobcats' representatives after helping position Texas State for its first season of Pac-12 competition.

Jackson returns after emerging as one of the nation's premier dual-threat quarterbacks. Jackson threw for more than 3,200 yards and 21 touchdowns while adding 744 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground in 2025. He enters 2026 on the preseason watch list for the Maxwell Award, honoring the outstanding player in college football, while earning preseason All-Pac-12 recognition from multiple outlets.

Sparks established himself as one of the Bobcats' top playmakers during the 2025 campaign and returns as one of Jackson's primary targets. A proven deep threat with the ability to create explosive plays, he was recognized as a first-team all-conference selection at wide receiver last season and a second-team all-purpose selection. A 2025 All-Sun Belt Conference Third Team selection, Dawn, Jr., joined Sparks in etching his name into the TXST record books. Sparks and Dawn, Jr., both posted 1,000+ yard seasons in 2025, giving the Bobcats their first season in history with two players eclipsing the total.

After seeing his season come to an end early due to injury in 2025, Landry enters 2026 revitalized and ready to capitalize on a successful 2024 campaign. In 13 games, he registered 33 tackles (19 solo) and added 7.5 TFLs for 40 yards and 4.5 sacks for 24

Owens joins the Bobcats after a season at Arizona and played two seasons at Northwestern State.

All ticket options for the 2026 campaign are available through Texas State Athletics Ticket Office including season tickets for all seven home games at UFCU Stadium, away games tickets and mini plans. 

Fans with questions regarding tickets or Bobcat Club contributions can contact the Texas State Athletic Ticket Office at 512-245-2272 or gametickets@txstate.edu.